JPMorgan Chase & Co. Upgrades 3M (NYSE:MMM) to "Overweight"

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM - Free Report) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $111.00 price target on the conglomerate's stock, up from their previous price target of $110.00.

Several other research analysts have also commented on MMM. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of 3M from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an underperform rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of 3M from $95.31 to $98.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Mizuho reissued a neutral rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $103.70.

3M Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of MMM traded up $1.91 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $98.42. The company had a trading volume of 11,062,602 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,913,986. The company's 50 day moving average price is $95.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.54. The stock has a market cap of $54.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.86, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.02. 3M has a 52 week low of $71.12 and a 52 week high of $99.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69.

3M (NYSE:MMM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The conglomerate reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.29. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.40% and a positive return on equity of 62.45%. The business had revenue of $8 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.97 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that 3M will post 8.19 EPS for the current year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from 3M's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. 3M's dividend payout ratio is currently -47.82%.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of 3M

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fragasso Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fragasso Group Inc. now owns 2,556 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Bangor Savings Bank raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 10,489 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,147,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 20,931 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,288,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Summit Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,316 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of 3M by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,900 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About 3M

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company's Safety and Industrial segment offers industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications; autobody repair solutions; closure systems for personal hygiene products, masking, and packaging materials; electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance, power distribution, and electrical original equipment manufacturers; structural adhesives and tapes; respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions; and natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles.